Three districts among grant finalists

Published 10:45 am, Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Three west-central Illinois school districts have been announced as finalists in this year’s America’s Farmers Grow Rural Education program, sponsored by the Monsanto Fund.

Carrollton school district, Greenfield school district and Edwardsville school district are among the top in Illinois in the running for grants of $10,000 and $25,000.

Earlier this year, farmers nominated public school districts to apply for Grow Rural Education grants. Once nominated, school districts were eligible to complete applications requesting funding for a specific math or science project that will enhance curriculum in their district. A panel of math and science educators evaluated all of the applications and selected the strongest submissions as finalists.

“Making it to this stage of the process is a great accomplishment that requires a lot time and effort,” said Michelle Insco, Monsanto Fund program officer. “There is still more to do before we announce our winning school districts, but this year’s finalists submitted impressive applications. The Monsanto Fund is grateful for their focus on improving math and science opportunities for their students.”

Next, finalist applications will be reviewed by the Grow Rural Education Farmer Advisory Council. The Advisory Council, made up of farmers from across the U.S., will select this year’s winners, which will be announced in early August.

Last year, Grow Rural Education invested $170,000 in public school districts across Illinois to improve math and science curriculum. Since 2011, Illinois school districts have received $580,000 through the program.